-
Press Release: Mastercard and Ecobank Group Partner to Digitize Agricultural Value Chains in Africa and Empower Millions of Smallholder Farmers Through Digital and Financial Inclusion
Mastercard and Ecobank Group will deploy Mastercard Farm Pass, an award-winning, innovative solution that helps connect smallholder farmers to financial and agricultural ecosystems.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
-
EU Lawmakers Are Pushing for a Plan to Raise Cocoa Prices in West Africa
West African farmers at the heart of this value chain have remained extremely poor over time - lawmakers are trying to change that imbalance.
- Categories
- Agriculture
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
-
PepsiCo, Schneider Energise Supply Chain
In a bid to increase access to renewable energy for its value chain partners, PepsiCo has partnered with Schneider Electric to create pep+ REnew.
- Categories
- Energy
- Region
- Global
-
The Mastercard Foundation Seeks Partners to Provide Access to Inclusive Financial Services for the Agriculture and Adjacent Sectors in Ghana
The Mastercard Foundation has announced the opening of an Expression of Interest (EOI) process to collaborate with prospective partners in bridging access to inclusive financial services for the Agriculture and Agric-adjacent sectors, to unlock work opportunities for young Ghanaian women and men.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
-
Rethinking the Role of Business in Conservation: Why Small Local Enterprises are Key to Biodiversity and Climate Action
Climate change mitigation and adaptation are a key focus of attention in the global development sector. But according to Julia Rohe-Frydrych and Luis Ebert at adelphi, these discussions tend to overlook the conservation of the planet’s biodiversity, and they often fail to envision a role for the private sector that goes beyond providing climate finance. They argue that climate change and biodiversity loss are two sides of the same coin, and explore the importance of empowering local businesses that profit from the protection or restoration of nature.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship, Environment
-
AgDevCo Secures $90 Million of DFI Funding to Further Invest in African Agribusinesses to Deliver Jobs, Incomes, and Food
AgDevCo announced a $90m package of new funding from the CDC Group, Norfund and DFC which will allow AgDevCo to continue to grow its investment activities in agriculture across Sub-Saharan Africa.
- Categories
- Agriculture
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
-
The Power of Women in Cocoa: Supporting Female Farmers Could Boost Liberia’s Access to Lucrative Premium Markets
Women farmers are essential to the production and trade of cocoa in West Africa, and often comprise a majority of the farming workforce. But as Sabine Garbarino, Amelia Duggan and Kim Beevers at GROW Liberia explain, women's importance to the sector is not always recognized, despite the key role they play in maximizing the quality of cocoa beans. They explore how the work of female farmers drives the cocoa industry in Liberia – and why efforts to support these farmers can open the door to more lucrative market segments and greater social impact.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Entrepreneurship
-
Redefining the Corporate Value Chain: How Social Procurement Can Benefit Both Corporations and Social Businesses
The challenges of scale and the need for greater corporate involvement are perennial topics of discussion in the social business sector. But according to Lucie Durand and Daniel Nowack at Yunus Social Business, both of these challenges can be addressed through social procurement – the practice of integrating social businesses into corporate value chains. They discuss how this strategy can harness corporations' buying power to scale social enterprises, and share insights from a how-to guide for industry practitioners interested in social procurement.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship